Washing machine



'July 24, 1923 1.462.734 G. s. BLAKEsLl-:E

WASHING MACHINE y Filed July 23 l191'7 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 nm,... IllllllllllmlflE @nimumumnnm l' fai-NlllllllllllllllllillllllIllll July 24, 1923- G', s, BLAKESLEE WASHING MGHINE F1194 July as, 1917 4 sheets-sheet@ Ju|y'24, 1923` 1.462.734

G. S. BLAKESLEE WASHING MACHINE Filed July 2s, 1917 4 sheets-sheet A +11 mwMSN-sw 5@ July 24, 1923 1,462,734

G. s. BLAIKEsLEE WASHING MACHINE Patented July 24', 1923.

UNITED sTATn GEURGE S. JBLAKESLEE,

incarna or CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

WASHING MACHINE.

Application led July 23,

To all whom it may concern.'

Be it known that I, GEORGE S. BLAKESLEE,

. a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Washing Machines,

of which the following is a specification,

reference being had to the accompanying drawings.

My invention relates to washing machines intended for use in washing small articles of various kinds such as shells, castings, dishes, &c., and has to do with washing machines of that type in which the wash water, and also the rinsing water where rinsing is provided for, is arranged to be thrown against or upon the articles to be washed by means ofpaddle wheels or equivalent devices operatin lin a tank containing the water, the articles to be washed being moved over the tank in such manner as to be sub- 'jected t'o the action ofthe water. One of the objects of my present invention is to provide anew and improved washing machine in which 'the water is not only thrown violentlyup against the articles to be washed from below, but may be also directed downwardly upon the articles in large volume so that they are completely and eft'ectually cleansed. Another object is to provide a construction by which the water maybe applied t0 the articles in a variety of ways., i. e. either in large volume or in the form of a spray or shower as may be preferred. Other objects are toV provide means for ensuring the separationof the wash water from the rinsing water and to provide improved means for holding the articles to be washed as they are passed through the ma chine so that such articles will not only be properly supported during the washing operation, but also the proper manipulation of the water will not be interfered with by the containers in which the articles are carried. I accomplish these objects as illustrated in the drawings and as hereinafter described.

What I regard as new and desire to cover by this a plication is set forth in the claims.

In le accompanying drawings:

Fig. 1 is a side `elevation of my improved machine;

Fig. 2 is a plan view thereof;

Fig. 3 is aside elevation showing the op- 1917. Serial No. 182,251.

posite side of the machine from that shown in Fig. 1;

. Fig. 4 is a longitudinal vertical section on line 4.-4 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 5 is an enlarged partial longitudinal sectional view on line 5-5 of Fig. 6 illustrating' the manner in which the water is directed during the washing or rinsing operation;

Fig. 6 is a plan vview vof the parts shown indFig. 5, the overhead deflector being omitte Fig-7 is a plan view of one of the containers or baskets in which the articles to be washed are carried, certain' parts being,

'the machine illustrated is more particularly intended. y

Referring to the dra-wings, 12 indicates a tank ofsheet iron or other suitable material which is oblong in shape and is divided by a vertical partition 13 into a washing compartment 14 and -a rinsing compartment 15. The tank 12 may be supported upon standards 16, or in any other suitable way. llt is also provided with a hood 17 which extends over the entire tank and is open at serve "t0 support the containers or baskets for the articles to be washed as they are moved along through the machine. 21-22 indicate baille plates disposed about midway of the washing and rinsing compartments 1415, respectively, and extending from the upper portion of each of said compartments down to near the bottom thereof, as bestshown in Fig. 4. These bame plates serve to keep the 'Water in the compart.

ments 14-15 comparatively quiet and increase the efliciency of the water distributing means hereinafter described. 23-24 indicate paddle wheels in the end portions of the washing andvrinsin compartments, respectively. These pad le wheels are mounted on horizontal shafts 25--26, respectively, journaled in suitable bearings at the sides of the tank 12 so that the paddle wheels extend transversely of their respective compartments. The shafts 25-26 are preferably placed about midway of the height of the tank 12 so that the wheels may be submerged to a greater or less extent by varying the depth of the water in the respective compartments. 27 indicates an overflow outlet pipe in the washing compartment 14, which is provided with an adjustable extension 28 by which the height of the overflow may be regulated. A simple way 0f accomplishing this is by fitting the extension 28 on screw threads on the pipe 27. 29 indicates -a similar overflow pipe in the rinsing compartment 15, and 30 a similar extension thereof. 31 indicates a discharge pipe with which the pipes 27 and 29 are connected. Said pipe may be provided with one or more valves if desired. Obviously by adjusting the extensions 28-30 the depth of the water in either the washing or the rinsing compartments may be regulated at pleasure.

32 indicates a guide or deflector disposed approximately vertically in the washing compartment 14 and extending transversely thereof adjacent to the paddle wheels 23 in such position that by the rotation of said paddle wheel the lower blades thereof throw the water upwardly and laterally against said deflector. Said deflector is pivotally supported adjacent to its lower end upon a pivot 33 and its upper end is adjustably held in position by an adjusting rod 34 which passes through a plate 35 and carries a wing nut 36, as shown in Fig. 4. Thus the inclination of the delector 32 may be varied within rather wide limits. As shown in Fig. 4, the upper end of said deflector is slightly curved toward the paddle wheel so that the water thrown up y the paddle wheel is directed to some extent over said wheel before it passes up, in the manner illustrated in Fig. 5. 37 indicates a similar delector pivotally mounted at 38 in the rinsing compartment 15 and arranged to cooperate with the paddle wheel 24 in the same way that the deflector 32 cooperates with the paddle wheel .-.3. 'llhe deflector 37 is provided with an adjusting rod 39 which passes through a plate 40 which carries a wing nut 41 s0 that'the deflector may be readily adjusted. It will be noted that both the deflectors 32 and 37 are placed between their respective paddle wheels and the adjacent overflow discharge.

42 indicates an overhead deflector disposed in the hood 17 over the paddle wheel 23 and partition 21. The deflector 42 is somewhat of the shape of a bow and is best made of sheet iron. One end portion of said deflector is provided with flanges 43 at its side edges by which" it may be secured fixedly to the sides of the hood 17 in an inclined position, as shown in Fig. 4. The other end portion 42a of said deflector is flexible and elastic and is not secured to the hood, but is free to be adjusted so that its curvature may be varied to vary the deflection of the water thrown against it. For the purpose of adjusting the part 42a of said deflector, a rod 44 is provided, which is connected with the free or inner end 42a of said deflector and passes through a suitable hole in the fixed or outer end of the deflector 42 where it is provided with a. wing nut 45, as shown in Fig. 4. By screwing the wing nut 45 further up on the rod 44 the curvature of the part 42a may be increased, and vice versa. It will'bel noted by an inspection of Figs. 4 and 5 that the inclined stationary portion of the deflector 42 overlies the paddle wheel'23, whereas the curved portion 42a of said deflector overlies the washing compartment 14 at the left hand side of the baille plate 21. The right hand end of the deflector 42 also is approximately in the same verticall plane as the vertical deflector 32 and consequently a considerable portion of the water thrown up by the paddle wheel 23 will be directed upward by the deflector 32 against the right hand end portion of the deflector 42, which will direct it laterally against the curved portion 42 of the latter deflector so that it will ultimately be di-v rected downward and into the left hand side of the compartment 14. Some of the water will of course be distributed by the paddle wheel 23 throughout the space between the baille plate 21 and the deflector 32, as indicated by the arrows in Fig. 5, and that water also will be deflected by the overhead deflector 42 so that it passes down into the left hand side of the washing compartment 14, as indicated by the arrows in said -gure. It will be apparent from the foregoing descriptionJ that by adjusting the position of the deflector 32 and of the flexible portion 42a of the deflector 42 the distributionI of Furthermore by varying the 'level of the water in the compartment 14, a still wider thrown up in a spray, and within these limits an almostl in nite variation of operation may be obtained. vl[n order to ensure the separation of the wash water from the rinsing water a swinging curtain or shieldl 46 is provided, which is pvoted at 47 so as to hang down beyond the free end of the deflector 42- and bear against such end, as shown in Fig.4. Preferably the lower end of said curtain is weighted, as ,shown at 48, and it hangsv down far enough so that while it does'not interfere `with the passage of the containers hereinafter described it prevents splashing from one compartment to the other. Obviously, when the flexible portion 42a is adjusted, the curtain 46 will automatically adjust itself so that it always remains in operative position. The rinsing end of the tank is provided with a similar overhead deector 4 9`which corresponds in all respects with the deflector 42 except that it is set oppositely. as shown in Fig. 4. 49a indicates the flexible portion of the detlector 49. 50 the flanges thereof, 51 the adjusting rod, 52 the wing nut, 53 the curtain, 54 the pivot of the curtain, and 55 the weight at the lower edge of said curtain.

56 indicates conveyor chains or belts mounted on sprocket wheels 57-58 carried by shafts 59-60. respectively. which' extend transversely of the machine adjacent the inlet end thereof and slightly below the upper margin of the tank 12. .Each belt 56 carries a lug 61 which is adapted to engage the receptacles or baskets in which the articles to be washed are placed, as will be hereinafter described. so that by the operation of said belts the baskets are pushed consecutively into the machine while resting on the tracks 20. The moving'parts of the apparatus areall driven from an electric motor 62 preferably mounted on top of the hood 17, as shown in Fig. 3, and provided with a pulley 63 connected by a belt 64 with a pulley 65 mounted on the paddle wheel shaft 25 outside of the machine, as shown in Fig. 3. At its opposite end the shaft 25 carries a pulley 66 connected by a crossed belt 67 with a pulley 68 carried by the paddle wheel shaft- 26, as shown in Fig. l. The latter shaft carries at its opposite end a pulley 69 connected by a crossed belt 70 with a pulley 71 carried by a shaft 72 which is mounted on top of the hood 17 at the opposite end of the machine from the motor 62, as shown in Fig. 3. The shaft 72 carries a pinion 73 which meshes with a gear 74 mounted l'on a shaft 75 which carries a sprocket wheel 76. @ver the latter sprocket wheel runs a chain 77 which drives a sprocket wheel 78 mounted on the-shaft 29, thusdriving the basket moving chains 6. wheels 23-24 are rotated in opposite direetions.

The construction of the basket is best shown in Figs. 7, 8 and 9. It comprises up'- per and lower rectangular frames 7 9-80 connected by upright strips 81-82 at opposite sides thereof and having transverse rods 83 and 84 disposed intermediately. The up-' rights 82 are provided with laterally extending brackets 83 which serve as spacing devices to hold the consecutive baskets a proper distance apart, as illustrated in Fig. 5. The spacing apart of the baskets during the operation of the machine is an important feature of my invention, as I thereby provide spaces or passageways between consecutive baskets so that a considerable volume vof water may pass up between them to be It will be apparent that the paddle discharged downwardly upon their contents,

as illustrated by the arrows in Fig. 5.

The bottom 85 of the basket is preferably of woven wire asshown in Fig. 9, but may be of any other suitable material or construction adapted to sustain the articles to be washed. The frames 83 and 84 carry longitudinal and transverse wires forming reticulated frames ada ted to receive the articles to be washed an hold them in fixed position.. Where the baskets are designed to carry'shells, the shells are placed in them in an inverted position, the wires of theolower frame 84 engaging and holding the lower ends of the shells so that they are not dis-arranged by the impact of the water, Where the shells are of uniform diameter the spacing of the wires of the lower frame may be the same as in the u per frame, but where the ends of the she ls are contracted, as shown in Fig. 10, the wires of the lower frame 84 are set closer together so that the squares formed are enough smaller to fit the reduced ends of the shells, as illustrated in Fig. 9. 87 indicates handles provided at the opposite sides of the basket'.

As will be observed from an inspection of Fig. 5, which illustrates my improved machine as used for washing shells, the basket moving conveyor operates to move a basket into the machine to a point where it overlies the paddle wheel 23, the inner' portion of the basket stopping short of the bathe plate 13 by a space equal to the width of the frame or bracket 83. vThe lugs 61 act against the ends of the brackets83 and con,- sequently there is also a space between the sprocket wheel 57 and the adjacent endv of the basket equal to the width of the bracket 83. Therotation of the paddle wheel throws the water up not only against the under side of the basket and into the .open lower ends of.

the shells, and up around the outsides of the shells, but also up through the spaces at the ends of the basket provided by the brackets 83 of consecutive baskets. After passing up around the shells and at the ends of the basket the water is deflected by the'overhead deliector and is thrown down upon the contents of the preceding basket which then overlies the left hand portion of the washing compartment, as illustrated in Fig. 5. The introduction of another basket moves the preceding baskets along upon the tracks 20, the operation beinglrepeated as fresh baskets are introduced 1nto the machine. At

the rinsinnr end of the machine the same operation ta es place, except that the baskets are first subjected to the down-flowing water and afterwards to the upwardly moving water thrown up by the paddle wheel 24.

It will be understood that while I have described with considerable particularity the embodiment of my invention illustrated in the drawings, I do not limit myself to the specific construction shown and described except in so far as it is specifically claimed, as my invention includes generically the subject-matter of the broader claims.

What I claim as my invention and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

l. A washing machine comprisin a tank, a hood extending thereover, a pad le wheel rotatably mounted in said tank, means for supporting the articles to be washed above said paddle wheel, a deflector cooperating with said paddle wheel to direct the water thrown thereby upward into contact with the articles to be washed, and an overhead defiector in said hood overlying the articles to be washed and said paddle wheel and serving to intercept the water thrown upward by the action of the paddle wheel and direct it downward into the tank.

2. A washing machine comprising a tank, a paddle wheel rotatably mounted therein,

,means/ for supporting the articles to be washed above said pa le wheel, an approximately upright defiector pivotally mounted at Aits lower end portion said tank, at one side of and adapted to cooperate with said paddle wheel to direct the water upward, and means connected with said del-lector for adjusting the position of the upper portion thereof, the upper portion of said deiector being curved toward the paddle wheel.

3. A washing machine comprising a tank, a hood extending thereover, means for su porting the articles to be washed over sald tank, means in said tank for throwing lwater upward into contact with the articles to be washed, and a deector disposed in said hood over said water thrbwing means and above the articles to be washed and arranged to direct the water laterally and downwardly into the tank.

4. A washing machine comprising a tank,

means for supporting the articles to be washed over said tank, means in said tank for throwing water upward into contact with the articles tobe Washed, a deiector dis osed over said water throwing means an above the articles to be washed and arrangedto direct the water laterally and downwardly into the tank, said deector havin a curved flexible portion, and means, for adjusting the flexible portion of said deflector to vary its action in directing the movement of the water.

5. A washing machine comprising a tank, means for supporting the articles to be washed over said tank, means in said tank for throwing water upwardy intol contact with the articles to be washed, an inclined deiector `disposed over the articles to be washed above said water throwing means, said deliector having a curved portion disposed at one side of said water throwing means whereby said deflector acts to direct the water laterally and downwardly into the tank, said curved portion bein iexible and elastic whereby it may be adjusted independently of the inclined portion of said deector.

6. A washing machine comprising a tank, a hood extending thereover, means for supporting the articles to be washed over said tank, means in said tank for throwing water upward into c0ntact with the articles to be washed, an overhead deector in said hood overlying saidgwaterl throwing means and the articles to be washed, and a dependingv curtain adjacent to one end of said delector.

7 A washing machine comprising a tank, a hood extending thereover, means for supporting the articles to be washedover said tank, means in said tank for throwing water upward into Contact with the articles to be washed, an overhead delector in said hood overlying said water throwing means and lthe articles to be washed, and a pivotally ysuspended curtain adjacent -to one end of said deflector.

8. Awashing machine comprising a tank,

means for supporting the articles to be washed over saidtank, means saidtank for throwing water upward inta contact with the articles to be washed, an overhead vdeflector abovesaid water throwing means and the articles to be washed, said 'defiector having a curved portion at one end, means for adjusting said curved portion of the deiector, and a curtain suspended adjacent to said curved portion of the deliector andl automatically adjustable therewith to maintain its operative relation thereto.

9. A washing machine comprising a tank,

means for supporting the articles to bel washed over said tank, means in-said tank for throwing water upward intoV contact with the article! to he washed, an overhead deector shove nid wahr throwing means and the articles to be Washed, said deector having a curved portion at one end, means for adjusting said curved portion of the deiector, and a curtain suspended adjacent to and bearing against the curved portion of said deflector' whereby the adjustment of said deflector automatically adjusts-the position of said curtain to maintain its operative relation with said detlector.

10. A washing machine comprisinga tank, a paddle wheel in said tank adapted to throw waterupward, means for supporting the articles to be washed above said paddle Wheel, a delector in said tank adapted to cooperate with said paddle wheel for directing water upwards, an overhead dedector above the articles to be washed and adapted to cooperate with said paddle wheel and said first-mentioned defiector, one or more recepf taclesladapted to contain the articles to be washed, a conveyor for moving said receptacles into washing position, and means for wheel, a detlector in said tank adapted'to cooperate with said paddle wheel for directing water upwards, an overhead deflector above the articles to be washed and adapted to cooperate with said paddle wheel and said first-mentioned deflector, one or more receptacles adapted to contain the articles to be washed, a convey'or for moving said recep` tacles into washing` position, and end brackets carried by said receptacles for spacing successive receptacles a distance apart to provide passageways for water at the ends of said receptacles. p

GERGE S. BLAKESLEE. 

